Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Seoul reaps the whirlwind of its hardline towards Pyongyang

After much bickering the meeting between North and South Korea end after 22 minutes. Pyongyang did not summon Seoul to a friendly chat. Its invitation bodes ill for South Korea's president Lee Myung bak who has toed a George W. Bush hardline approach to North Korea. North Korea has yet to drop the shoe on Mr. Lee. Reading the tea leaves of the moment, it is quite reasonable to say that Kim Jong il is willing to close down the Kaesong free trade zone which is a multimillion dollar initiative for South Korea. And hard money is something a South Korean economy hit by the world recession which the IMF [International Monetary Fund] likens to as bad as the Great Depression of the 1930's...liquidity which Seould badly needs. The harder the line towards Pyongyang the better Mr. Lee likes it. And especially since elections loom large on the horizon, and he has come under harsh criticism for his ineptitude. More. Mr. Lee is a rocking chair cold warrior who thinks not twice in recreating an axis of hostility with Japan and the US, to cower North Korea. China won't go along with that, and Beijing has sent messages of its distaste for such a development. Such a South Korean initiative would result in snapping relations with China and freezing Seoul's massive investments in China.Mr. Lee has tunnel vision, but he cares little. Since not only is he a cold warrior but his god's righteous sword. Does he remember that he who lives by the sword dies by the sword? In brief, Mr. Lee since he trashed the 'Sunshine Policy', withheld fuel oil and food from the North, and has whipped up overt hostility to the person of Kim Jong il...is slipping badly on a purely slick slope of his own making.